General Duty Requirements

General Duty Requirements

Your facility is not subject to the RMP rule because you do not have any of the listed chemicals at or above the specified threshold quantities. However, you may be subject to the federal and state General Duty Clauses. The General Duty Clause requires owners and operators of stationary sources producing, processing, handling or storing any of the chemicals mentioned below to perform the following three functions.

Identify hazards that may result from accidental releases of such substances using appropriate hazard assessment techniques.

To design and maintain a safe facility.

To minimize the off-site consequences of accidental releases of such substances that do occur.

What Chemicals are subject to the General Duty Clause?

LOUISIANA'S GENERAL DUTY CLAUSE

Louisiana has a supplemental list of 65 chemicals with threshold quantities that are subject to the general duty clause. Meeting the 3 requirements above if you have any of these 65 chemicals above their threshold quantity will satisfy Louisiana's General Duty Clause.

The Federal RMP General Duty Clause (CAA 112 (r) (1)) mentions no specific chemicals. The term "extremely hazardous substances" is used rather than mentioning specific chemicals and refers to any agent that is released into the air and whose short-term exposure results in death, injury, or property damage due to its toxicity, reactivity, flammability, volatility, or corrosivity. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the owner or operator of a facility to decide if chemicals in the facility are "extremely hazardous substances". If so, the owner or operator must meet the 3 requirements listed above to satisfy the federal General Duty Clause.